Because You're My Brother
by Of Wolves And Dogs
Summary: His brother was a degenerate, a rebel with a lost cause that stuck his finger to the world because he simply could. And for the life of him, Vergil could not understand why he bothered protecting such a train wreck. oneshot


**summary:** _His brother was a degenerate, a rebel with a lost cause that stuck his finger to the world because he simply could. And for the life of him, Vergil could not understand why he bothered protecting such a train wreck._ [oneshot]

**rating: **'T' for teen for violence and language

**because you're my brother: when silence is golden  
by: of wolves and dogs**

Vergil & Dante

**"**_I know you're having your doubts  
But you're lashing out, lashing out, violently.  
We should be on the same team  
And we won't get caught, if we move around silently**."**_

- _Jealous Enemies_ by Dark Captain Light Captain

* * *

"Hey, hey, hey! Check this out, guys!" the blue-eyed teen in the onyx leather jacket crooned out as he leaned against the back of the seat on the city bus. On cue the other teenagers lounging about rose to attention, whistling eagerly at the pair of sculpted legs that just got onto the bus. Plaid skirt, tight shirt and the boys were already jaw-dropped with their tongues lolling out. "Hey, lady, are you going to tell me your number or do I have to look for it in your skirt?" the youth jeered on, the other boys laughing, some even whipping out their cell phones to take pictures of the now flustered girl.

"Damn Dante, you always find the good ones," a boy called out as he snapped a picture, causing the other boys to give nods. "You going to bag this baby?" the boy went on, causing the pure-haired teen to lightly stand up and raise his hands up to silence the mob of teenagers who matched his wolfish grin with their own.

"Boys, expect me to hit a homerun," Dante exclaimed as he made the motions as if he had a baseball bat in his hands and just struck a flying imaginary ball. He grinningly put his hand up to shield his eyes as if he was making sure that the baseball was long gone into the horizon. "Home team wins!" Dante grinned; the city bus was soon filled with chanting, cheers and laughter. Already the bus driver was trying to calm down the boys over the intercom, but it was useless. The youth lightly fixed his hair before sauntering over to the glaring girl who was slowly making her way near the bus driver and away from the hormonal teenager. "Hey…what's your name, gorgeous?" Dante purred out as he casually moved forward, his body not at all fazed by the moving bus and its irregular stops.

"I'm not going to tell you," the short-haired girl spat out darkly.

"Lady it is, then," Dante shrugged before reaching out and grabbing the girl's chin with his right hand that bore an onyx fingerless glove. "That's a nice shirt…can I talk you out of it?" the teen gave a demonic grin, revealing those pearly white teeth of his. Lady scrunched her nose up and before she could slap the male right in the face, the bus came to an abrupt halt. It was only a matter of minutes before Dante found himself shoved off the bus along with the other misfits, a frustrated expression dancing on his face as he displayed obscene hand gestures to the city bus that left them behind.

Seated in content near the window, book in hand, eyes pried away from the inked words to stare at the snarling youth outside. Eyes watched the mouth move and form words, but the words were unable to pass through the bus's windows. Shaking his head in slight disappointment, the snow-haired teen turned his powder blue eyes back to the book in his hands. This happened every day and the silent teenager was beginning to wonder when the whole group was going to be banned from all public transportation vehicles. But that wasn't why he was shaking his head in disappointment. It was the very fact that he was related to that degenerate Dante. Twins, to be exact. They were alike in appearances but not in personalities (and personally, in intelligence too). They were the opposite sides of a coin. Dante tails and him heads. If it wasn't for appearances, no one would have believed they were even an ounce related by blood.

Vergil Sparda was Fortuna Academy's top student with universities that were groveling already for him to apply, even though he was still a sophomore. Dante Sparda was one of Dumary High School's troublesome students and in a gang littered with upperclassman. The two were complete opposites and he thanked his stars they went to different high schools. Too bad that blessing was about to be taken away from him.

* * *

_Day One…_

"You got to be kidding me!?" the twins exclaimed in unison as they stared in horror at their pursed lip mother and brooding father. Dante gave a dark look at Vergil, who returned the look with a 'hmph' and a turn of his head in disgust.

"Come on, pops. I don't want to go to Vergil's 'I-have-a-stick-up-my-ass' school. Last time I checked, I don't like getting violated in that area!" Dante huffed out, causing the older twin to roll his eyes and sink back into the Victorian sofa in the cream-hued living room. "Man, it's not my fault that Nero squealed… I knew, I _knew_ it, too. He had that look in his eyes…hope they broke his arm real good," Dante growled out before sinking back into the couch afterward, looking vaguely smug at the idea of this kid's arm being broken. Vergil honestly did not understand his brother one bit. He was crude, rude, loud, hotheaded and possibly had more diseases than brain cells. And now his parents wanted to send him to one of the most expensive schools in the country with the intentions of discipline!? Fortune Academy was and still is a school where the elite come in and came out even greater than before. Last time Vergil checked, Dante was not considered 'great' or even 'elite' in grades.

_You got to be joking._

"I will not be hearing anymore of this from you, Dante," the elder Sparda spoke sharply, causing Dante to curse under his breath and nothing more. Vergil stared silently at his sighing father and mother before getting to his feet and brushing off the imaginary lint off of his school uniform. They were still fighting over this even though that today was the day – judgment day. "Now come on, I'm going to drive the both of you to school today," he added on after a moment of silence, Dante slowly getting to his feet and tugging at the tie on his uniform.

"I feel like a monkey in a suit," Dante grumbled and Vergil resisted the urge to agree with his brother. It was better to be quite and keep to yourself. Talking always seemed to lead to trouble and Dante was a breathing example of this. Silence was golden and he planned to keep silent and pretend that Dante did not exist. If luck was truly on his side today, then maybe Dante would be expelled. He knew his father pleaded with and bribed the principle to let Dante in and he knew for a fact that Dante was on thin ice already. So then it was settled. All he would have to do was grin and bear with Dante for one day and nothing more.

That didn't sound so bad.

* * *

Vergil stared anxiously at the chalkboard, left leg jittery as his left foot lightly tapped a steady soft beat on the ground. It seemed the teacher caught drift of his new pupil and made sure that the girl sitting next to him now sat in front of him, leaving an empty desk beside him. God, that idiot of a teacher wanted him to sit by Dante! Cursing under his breath, he instead turned his attention on adjusting his school's uniform with its maroon jacket and golden crest blazoned on the right. The shrill sound of the bell told him class was going to start and still there was no Dante. He knew new students were required to go to the office, but maybe – hopefully – Dante ditched. Now _that _would be a blessing.

The door swung open and lo behold, there was Dante with his ruffled hair, mussed uniform and disgruntled expression. "Class, I would like to welcome a new student to this school's grand halls. Everyone, this is Dante Sparda – please, sir, write your name on the board," the teacher announced, handing Dante the stub of chalk. Dante stared at it and Vergil could almost hear his brother's thoughts ("_These rich-ass kids know how to spell…they can figure it out_.") and he prayed that his idiot of a brother would keep his mouth shut. _Just write your name, Dante… Just write it… Just write it… _Dante heaved out a heavy sigh and turned toward the board, writing his name as sloppily as he could before turning it around and tossing the chalk behind him. Vergil relaxed in relief as Dante moved away from the teacher and proceeded toward the empty space by Vergil, plopping himself beside his silent brother. As much as he wanted Dante gone, he was not going to suffer Dante's embarrassing antics early in the morning. Just thinking about it already was leaving him with a bad taste in his mouth.

Vergil kept his lips still and nothing more as his brother rested his head against the desk and began to fall asleep. The urge to rouse his brother and snap at him for his incompetence rose inside of him, but he kept quiet, ignoring the curious stares from the other students. Vergil shook his head and instead focused on the teacher, his hand habitually taking notes as the teacher droned on.

It was the sound of a soft '_hissss'_ that broke Vergil out of his trance a few hours later, seeing that Dante opened one of his beloved energy drinks. Making an annoyed sound, Dante only smirked and drank the drink as the teacher diligently kept his back to the class. Vergil almost felt as if this was on purpose! The teacher obviously has been bribed to ignore Dante and at this rate he would be stuck dealing with Dante's antics for the rest of the semester.

It was only after school did Vergil pleasantly found Dante has walked ahead of him, giving Vergil the luxury of walking by himself. He rather not be seen anymore with his brother, and already rumors were flying about that the perfect Vergil was brothers with the infamous rebel, Dante. Already he could see those groveling universities catching whiff of this and shying away, mumbling something about other perfect Vergils out there and not needing this one. Leave it to Dante to always screw things up for him.

"Hey, Verge!" a voice called out, causing Vergil to pause and turn to see Dante leaning against the glass window of the arcade. It was a popular place for kids to hang out and here was Dante, uniform messy beyond comprehension and standing behind a tall, dark-haired teen with bright eyes and an electric-white grin. Vergil flinched as Dante mockingly waved at him, causing the other teen to sneer beside Dante. Now that was the leader of the gang Dante has been milling about ever since he was first entered high school. His name was Alastor but others always referred to him as the "Thunder Devil". Vergil honestly did not know why but he rather not find out. There were times when ignorance was truly bliss and nothing more. "Go home, Vergy-poo! Go kiss up to dad and mom," Dante sang out teasingly, shooing Vergil away with his hand. Vergil only stared for a brief moment before walking off without another word. He didn't have time to deal his brother's stupid antics.

* * *

_Day Two…_

"Alright, get your books out!" the teacher commanded, ruler in one hand as he walked through the aisles. Students hurriedly tugged their soft-covered textbooks out and placed them on the desk. Those unfortunate not to have them with them at the time were sent to the front of the class and given a firm and public lashing by the teacher's ruler. It was the school's way of disciplining and hardening the minds of the youth for a better tomorrow. "Books, books, get them out – you, up. You, get up," the teacher growled out in that grizzly voice of his, Vergil watching as two boys grudgingly got up from their seats toward the chalkboards.

Icebergs for eyes glanced at Dante, seeing he was asleep on the desk and without a book on it either. Vergil inwardly cursed, blaming himself for not reminding Dante to bring his – _what am I talking about. He wouldn't have brought it anyways. _Vergil wanted to cross his arms firmly and not care. He wanted to watch Dante be yanked out of his scene and publicly humiliated. Then why was he stabbing Dante with his finger? Rousing him up?

Dante woke up, grumbling and mumbling as he sat up, the sound of something sliding reaching his ears. Fully opening his eyes, he looked down to see a white textbook on his desk with red lettering on the front in primo condition. About to give a quizzical look to Vergil, he found his older twin making his way to the front of the room with the two other boys. "Eh?" Dante hummed out as the teacher made his way back to the front after his rounds. Dante stared at the textbook silently, flipping the book open before leafing through the pages. Closing it, he preceded with laying his head down on the surface of the book and falling back to sleep.

Vergil stood wordlessly at the chalkboard, back to the class and eyes boring into the evergreen-hued boards. This was the first time he has been up here and he could feel his heart racing as the youth next to him hissed at each stroke of the ruler. As the youth staggered back to his seat, Vergil lightly glanced at the approaching teacher and closed his eyes, biting his tongue.

_SLAP!_Teeth instantly clenched down fiercely at his tongue, grimacing at the burning fire running across his body. His body told him to move and get away from the bringer of this pain, but he stayed rooted with the focus of a masochist.

_SLAP!_This was silly! Dante was not worth this humiliating beating! Dante was not worth this at all. Wasn't he supposed to let Dante get expelled and out of his hair for good? Yet here he was standing in front of the class as they all watched him be disciplined by the teacher. _This better not go on my permanent record or – _

_SLAP! _

A low hiss escaped past his lips and the teacher pointed at him to go back to seat. With as much dignity as he could muster, he carefully made his way back to his desk. There was no uttered 'thank you', instead there was just the soft snores of Dante who was fast asleep on Vergil's textbook.

Just peachy.

* * *

_Day Four…_It was lunch time in the class and Dante was currently dreaming about a hot date with a nice pepperoni pizza when he was roused from his sleep. Vergil's textbook had officially became his pillow when it was offered to him to save him from disciplinary actions. Dante was grateful, his cheek _did_ start hurting when he slept only on the desk's hard surface and with Vergil's book the case was solved. Being tugged away from his pillow, he stared wearily at the three looming boys in their uniforms looking hot and bothered. Dante gave a lazy smirk as one of them slammed a hand onto his desk.

"I heard you've been flirting with my girl!" the middle one growled out and Dante couldn't help but chuckle. The preps wanted to fight him. How cute. "It's not funny, you dog. Don't think we all don't know you're a lowlife! Scum!" the student continued, causing Dante's smirk to fade into a dark frown. Kicking his desk away from him, Dante stood up, jerking the kid to his face before shoving him away from him. As the boy's cronies advanced, Dante's left foot instinctively kicked the boy in the gut before grabbing his chair and tossing it angrily at the window. The teacher emerged when the sound of shattered glass filled the air and it wasn't too long before Dante found himself being hauled into the principal's office.

* * *

_Day Five…_

The class bowed in respect when the teacher entered, Dante the only one that remained sitting on his seat lazily. He was let off with a warning yesterday and truthfully, Dante didn't much care about what happened to him in this school. Lately he has been feeling fidgety, wanting to ditch this richy-rich school and hang out with those that truly knew how to live their lives. This was but prison.

"Books out! Books out!" the teacher called out and Dante was already groaning in distress and ready to flop his head down on the desk. Screw school. Screw books. Screw it all. Before Dante's forehead could meet with the desk's cold exterior, it was blocked by the warm cover of a textbook. Eyes opened and stared at the close-up of Vergil's immaculate text book, the cover warm from where his brother's hands have been holding them – almost as if anticipating it all. Dante brought his head up and stared silently at Vergil's lone body that stood in front of the class. Eyes stared in silent mortification and confusion at this, not at all understanding why his older twin was constantly pulling him out of trouble. It didn't make sense at all and yet there was Vergil, gripping the metal edge of the chalkboard where the chalks rested as the sound of ruler meeting student filled the air.

Looking away, Dante stared silently at Vergil's seat before Vergil occupied it, a soft and hardly audible hiss escaping his lips when he sat down. Dante ran a hand through his hair in a flustered gesture before remaining awake the entire day, eyes glued to the clock and waiting for the bell to ring.

Vergil rubbed his nose as he exited the school building hours later, book in hand and eyes glued to the text as his legs led him toward the bus stop. Something caught his attention from the corner of his eye, making him raise his head to stare at the smiling Dante who was leaning against the wall. Vergil only gave a neutral stare before turning back to his book and moving forward once more.

"Oh! Oy! Hey!" Dante called out, chasing after Vergil and playfully patting his twin's sore behind. Vergil hissed and jerked away from the touch, giving a dangerous look to Dante as his younger twin lightly slung his arm around Vergil's neck. "Come on, Verge. Let's go get something to eat – my treat," Dante persuaded, causing Vergil to scoff and struggle to get out of Dante's grip. Dante only responded by once more patting Vergil's behind, causing him to hiss in distress, "Keep on denying me and I'll keep on molesting you."

"Dante…not so loud," Vergil growled out in warning, lightly glancing around to see if others were looking.

"Nahhh, no one cares. And I think we make a good couple anyways, or at least my hand and your butt does," Dante purred out, causing Vergil to lightly slap his hand aside and make sure he was a good couple of feet away from Dante. "Eat with me, Verge, or I'll keep on doing this," Dante grinned out, and Vergil got the sickening feeling that Dante wasn't going to stop until he agreed.

"Mmm! This is good!" Dante exclaimed as he chomped down hungrily on his pizza, the two of them standing outside with a box of pizza lying on the park bench thirty minutes later. They would sit, but Vergil was still temporarily sore from his beatings this morning from the teacher and so Dante stood beside his mirror image. "I don't get it…if you're such a masochist, why don't you get in trouble more often? Are you trying to send some kind of message to me, Verge? If so I read you loud and clear," Dante pointed out with a mouth full of pizza, lightly poking his brother's rear end for the hundredth time today.

"Dante!" Vergil exclaimed in distress, not truly sure what he was supposed to say in response or if he should just give up on scolding his brother. He never interacted with his brother – let alone anyone – in this crude manner and he felt out of place yet oddly relaxed. For once he was beginning to see another side of Dante, or at least a side Dante never showed him before. Usually the two were hostile to each other and constantly at each other's throats. Yet here were the two, co-existing in a park while eating pizza. It was enough to make Vergil crack a rare smile as he chewed into his slice of pizza, ignoring the fact this pizza was loaded with grease.

"_So_, what's the verdict? Like the pizza?"

Vergil lightly placed a hand over his mouth and replied, "Yeah." Nodding twice, causing Dante to let out a roar of laughter before placing Vergil into a headlock, the older twin protesting before the two were soon bursting into laughter for no apparent reason. Vergil did not have the heart to tell Dante that because of the headlock, Dante got one of Vergil's pepperonis on his cheek. _I'm sure he'll figure it out…_

A grin wide on his face, Dante soon suggested they walk home and not take the bus this time, surprising the older twin. "What about your friends?" Vergil asked as Dante began to usher him home. Dante just shrugged and lightly ruffled his own hair before shrugging for the second time.

"They're not that important right now…" he replied sheepishly, leaving Vergil stunned, eyes blinking in silent disbelief.

* * *

_Day Eight…_

Vergil was beginning to get the feeling that by the end of this semester that his backside would be completely void of any feeling. A part of him wondered idly if he could ask his father to file a lawsuit, finding the beatings to be suddenly mundane and medieval. Before Vergil saw these disciplinary actions to righteous and well, always scorning those that had to shuffle up to the chalkboard. Now, he snarled and hissed with the other perpetrators as they made their way up the aisles toward the chalkboard. Yet when it came to receiving the blows, they all bit their tongues and silenced themselves. It almost became a game – the one to make any noise was the weakest and therefore liable to be scorned by the rest of the class. Vergil was finding himself to be the victor on keeping his mouth shut and a sense of camaraderie with his classmates was formed.

He was respected among his peers and knowing this only made him give his trademark smirk that he never knew he bore. Now he couldn't say he enjoyed the beatings and truthfully he rather just avoid them, not seeing the point of being punished on a daily basis. But if this was the price of face, to make sure that Dante didn't make himself look more like a fool and that he, Vergil, still looked good among his peers, then so be it. He refused to let shame creep near his polished shoes and ironed maroon uniform.

An elbow nudged him in the side, causing Vergil to stare at his brother that made a gesture with his left hand as he lightly pointed toward Vergil with his head. Vergil frowned and lightly shook his head, causing Dante to roll his eyes and give out an exasperated sound. Dante was silently giving him permission to go ahead and doze off in class, assuring him that he would not be caught. Vergil frowned before making a face but found himself dropping his chin into his chest, head bowed forward as if he was praying. With a smile on Dante's face, he watched Vergil's eyes close as Dante soon followed suit and mimicked his brother's stance. The two twins soon fast asleep to the lullaby of the teacher's droning voice.

"Books! Books! Get them out," came the teacher's routine call as he scrawled something on the chalkboard before turning around to patrol the aisles. Vergil's eyes cracked open and he sat up, back popping as he glanced at the clock. The older teen nearly choked on the saliva in his mouth as he found that he successfully slept most of the day away. Sirens were ringing in his head, telling him that he has committed wrong and he struggled to shut them off, focusing on the task at hand. Vergil inhaled the air in preparation as he took out his own textbook and placed it on his desk. Ready to slide it to Dante when the teacher was scolding another student, the sound of something slapping the desk's surface gripped Vergil's ears and made him pause. Turning toward the source of the sound, he found a beaten textbook lying on Dante's desk next to his own perfect textbook. A dumbfounded look danced on Vergil's face, causing Dante to only to grin and nothing more. Vergil blinked for a few seconds before he matched Dante's smile with his own, pulling his own textbook toward him. The teacher breathed out in relief to see Vergil with his book as he passed by, seeing Vergil's lack of discipline only a fleeting phase.

Oh was he wrong.

It became tradition now in class to fall asleep and then wake up to the alarm of the teacher calling out for textbooks to be pulled out. The day then followed by either using the textbooks as shields and propping them up, hiding the fact they were scarfing down food, playing videogames on Dante's phone or drawing crude pictures on the desk. Then came nap time once more, books used as pillows as the two would silently doze off. Dante claimed Vergil drooled and Vergil would always heatedly deny such a claim before the two were soon bursting into fits of laughter.

"Come on, bro. I got to show you my town," Dante mused out one day as he placed his brother in a familiar headlock, causing Vergil to grumble and huff indignantly at his trapped self. "I'll teach you a few things…and maybe we can get you a girlfriend. Remember that chick from the bus that one day? I know where she works," Dante began to go off, ticking off everything the two were going to accomplish today. Vergil's words on finishing homework fell on deaf ears as he found himself dragged downtown, still in a headlock and already giving up on breaking free.

"I don't want a girlfriend," Vergil mumbled when he was finally released from Dante's hold. Dante gave him a strange look before waving his hand in a dismissing gesture. "I'm too busy to even think about matters like that…" Vergil defended but Dante only gave that dismissing gesture once more, causing the older twin to frown and stick his hands into his pockets.

"I understand, Verge. Anyways, I think you and Lady would do nicely together. She likes violence, and you like receiving it…its kind of romantic, no?" Dante gave a fox-like smile as Vergil rolled his eyes and said nothing more. Dante took this as a sign of victory and his smile morphed into a wolfish grin as he dragged his unenthusiastic brother toward the first place on the list.

"No."

"Come on! She won't trim a single thing than…just let her do something with it."

"No. I like how it is already."

"But it's boring!"

"Than so is yours!"

"But I won't look good if I had it styled…you will, though!"

"We're twins, Dante! We both look the same, thus by default that means it won't look good on me either!" Vergil shot back heatedly as Dante stood beside the mirror, giving a firm glare at his seated twin who bore now wet hair. "You're an idiot," Vergil stated blatantly, causing Dante to bristle and cross his arms across his chest at this. The two twins were at a petite and purple-hued hair salon and when Dante suggested that Vergil get a haircut, the older twin bristled and protested. Dante had to sit on his brother to keep him pinned when the blonde-haired woman washed his hair, purposely ignoring the fact that Vergil had quite an extensive vocabulary list when it came to profanities. Dante thought for sure that Vergil admitted defeat when he grudgingly sat down with his soaking hair as it was towel-dried by the blonde. So when he asked the lady to cut Vergil's hair, it led the twins to the so-said argument.

Running a hand through his damp hair, Vergil heaved out a sigh and began to lecture his younger twin on manners and on Dante's rude and degenerate attitude. Dante allowed the words to go through one ear at the other as he turned his attention to Vergil's hand that slicked his snow-hued locks back. A few stray locks fell forward but the rest stayed in put for a while, trying to understand this new motion before falling limply back in place. It was perfect! Dante gave a yelp in joy, causing Vergil to lift a graceful eyebrow in question as Dante came toward him and grasped his hand. "That's it! That's it!" Dante exclaimed as he jerked Vergil's hand about, causing the older twin to give a troubled expression. Dante seemed to have finally snapped and Vergil made a pained face when Dante dropped his hand and began to play with his damp hair.

"Look, Dante – alright…I'll get it trimmed, just…calm down!" Vergil soothed out in worry and annoyance, but Dante shushed him and grabbed the hairstylist's manicured hand. Vergil tried to understand a single word he uttered out to the woman, but it was all jumbled together in excitement that all he heard were blurred words and garble. The hairstylist seemed to understand and shot a confused look to the now grinning Dante. "What…just happened," Vergil asked but it came out as a statement, Dante only giving a laughing response.

"Inspiration, Verge. Inspiration."

Vergil toyed with his hair, fingers brushing against the now trained locks that were slicked back in the front. The few stray locks remained defiant and refused to be trained back, lightly brushing against his forehead stubbornly. Fingers left the dragged back hair with its spikes and spines, a soft sound in awe leaving him as he gazed silently at himself whenever a chance to see his reflection was available. A part of him noted dryly he was acting like a cliché narcissist but he couldn't help it. He looked so strange yet it eerily fit him perfectly, making his powder blues stand out and his skin almost glowed in the dim light from the setting sun.

"Well that went well, huh?" Dante's tone dripped out amusement as he watched Vergil continue to stare at himself curiously at his reflection in the arcade's window. The two made their way to the arcade after the hair incident and Dante was proud of his brother, watching as he curiously stared at himself through the window. "I got to take care of some things…I'll see you a home, alright? Don't stand here all day, you hear?" Dante laughed as he looped his arm around Vergil's neck once more, feeling oddly clingy to his older brother that huffed and squirmed in his grip.

"Sure, sure…be home before dinner. Mom's going to have a riot if you're late again this week," Vergil advised, Dante waving Vergil off as he was already pushing himself into the arcade, the loud blare of rock music reentering the atmosphere from being caged inside the building. Vergil stared after Dante with an afterthought, those pale eyes scanning the glass door as if trying to search for a hidden answer. Shaking his head, the elder Sparda twin moved away with those graceful strides of his, hands straightening the jacket of his uniform. Dante surprised him – confounded him in such strange ways. He was the older son of Sparda and the steps he takes are always in time and calculated. And his counterpart was always marching to his own erratic beat, causing trouble, sticking his finger to the world with his "devil may care but I sure don't" attitude. They were complete and utter opposites yet somehow, in less than two weeks the two were fast friends.

Odd, it was all odd. A part of him feared he was turning out to be like Dante with their silent rebellion in class by fooling around. Of course his grades were still spot on but – "You know, I don't really care if you two are brothers and whatever. But when one of my boys walk out because of a brother, that's when I get pissed," a voice rudely cut in, causing Vergil to turn toward the sound and successfully earn a fist to the jaw.

_The hell!?_Staggering back, a hand touched the right-side of his jaw and hissed at the burning pain. Turning his eyes upward, his furious expression was turned down a notch as he saw the approaching mob of smirking teenagers with their torn jeans and beady eyes. There in the middle like some commanding general was Alastor himself with his spiked ebony locks and smug expression. Feeling a cold shiver run through his spine, Vergil could feel goose bumps litter his clothed arms as the mob only swarmed in closer.

_Shit. _

* * *

_Day Ten…_

"Vergil, I demand to know!" Dante growled out warningly as his older twin moved onward with indifference written on his face. He hated this. He hated it when Vergil flipped on the anti-social switch and gave everyone the silent treatment, always ignoring everything and everyone around him. "Vergil, you asshole, you better tell me before I start asking everyone around school about this with my fists," Dante threatened, causing Vergil to lightly pause in step and heave out a heavy sigh. Dante resisted the urge to smirk in victory and instead stared seriously at his contemplative brother.

"I thought…I already informed you – " Vergil began fluidly like an aristocratic politician at a party speaking with his colleagues that were obviously below him in power. Dante snarled at this and cut Vergil off, shaking his head fiercely at this all.

"'It's nothing' is not a good enough reason for me," Dante replied, causing Vergil to give a shrug of his shoulders and advertise an expression that read "you can believe or not believe me, I honestly don't care". It was with that done and said did Vergil continue to move on, Dante staring after him in aggravation. Last night he came home to find Vergil was already dead asleep and missing dinner, forcing him to eat dinner in awkward silence with his worrying parents. It was this morning when all three of them saw Vergil's face that sported a gruesome bruise on his right cheek and a few scratch marks around the forehead followed by a split lower lip. Vergil looked downright dangerous and when all inquired about this, he would just shrug his shoulders and reply, "It's nothing…"

"Are you sure you still want to go to school…looking like that?" Dante asked after a moment of silence, trailing after his brother. Vergil gave a simple shrug as he continued on his way, only furthering Dante's anger up the chart. Being ignored and given answers that didn't even come close to answering the question was not something he looked at with kindness. "Vergil – ow!" Dante huffed but soon he found him running into Vergil's iron back, causing his nose to smack roughly into the back of his older brother's head. Wincing and rubbing his nose, he went to complain but stopped when he spotted a surprised expression forming on his brother's face. "Verge?"

Vergil tilted his head toward Dante, the expression replaced by one of growing cold superiority and accompanied by an icy smirk. Pale eyes met with Dante's as he motioned with his eyes for Dante to glance at the entrance of the school. Dante did so and soon found a familiar bunch leaning against the school's gates by their growling motorcycles lying motionless by the curb. Dante cursed under his breath but nothing more as Vergil moved onward, causing Dante to open his mouth in protest but close it uselessly. Instead he opted to dashing toward his older sibling and walking by his side, occasionally glancing at Vergil but only finding that cold superiority he displayed moments ago.

"Last time I checked…_scum_ weren't allowed near the school. However, if you came here to show off your black eye to me…you didn't need to go through all the trouble," Vergil articulated calmly before the group, Dante suddenly gripping Vergil's arm in warning, "I already saw it last night."

The pieces clicked, Dante's grip almost faltering on Vergil's left arm. The bruises and scrapes on Vergil were from Alastor and his boys. Eyes flicked over to Alastor who pushed himself off the wall, left eye surrounded by purpling and yellowed skin and looking royally pissed. Dante bit his tongue, already trying to drag Vergil away from the scene and into the school, but Alastor only moved forward and Vergil's feet refused to move. The younger twin watched as Alastor gave a tight smile and fondly patted Vergil's bruised cheek, the older twin wincing slightly and nothing more. "It looked so well on me this morning, I thought I should come over and inform you that I believe you'll look good in it too," Alastor replied mockingly, causing Vergil to sardonically place his hand over his heart as if he was touched by those words.

"How sweet…however you could have told me somewhere more private. If we keep on meeting in public places, people will talk – " Vergil began smoothly but was cut off when Dante began jerking him roughly onto the school grounds. Vergil only grinned at the diminishing group, Alastor's livid face forever painted in his memory.

"Are you crazy!?" Dante questioned when the two entered the school building, Vergil suddenly interested with the passing lockers in the hallway. "You picked a fight with Alastor!? Why!?"

"I did not initiate a fight with that low-life, _dear brother_," Vergil replied tersely as he effectively ignored the bewildered stares the passing students gave him. "He started it…I just reacted. To every action there is a reaction; he punched, I punched back. Honestly, it's not my fault," Vergil sighed out softly, telling Dante that this conversation was boring him.

"You gave the leader of a gang full of future criminals a black eye!? And all you can say is "I just reacted"!? Where's Vergil and what have you done with him?" Dante exclaimed, tossing his hands up in the air uselessly. Vergil only gave a simple shrug before entering the classroom, Dante standing outside of it in thought. He hated to admit it…but he was impressed with his older sibling, enjoying the fact that someone managed to leave a decent mark on Alastor. Shaking his head, he wiped the proud grin off of his face and made his way inside, taking his seat beside his battle-worn brother.

Dante began to become irked when the girls and the boys in the classroom began to ask Vergil about his battle scars during break. They asked in worry at first, one girl bravely touching the bruised cheek which lead to the other girls doing the same, then awe came from the boys at the marks before asking Vergil to tell them what happened. Dante thought for sure he would give them the cold shoulder and advise them to mind their own business, but to his surprise Vergil answered back. The replies were crisp and to the point, never elaborating, but the students didn't seem to mind. Instead the camaraderie he built among the classmates only increased by ten folds, Dante watching as Vergil seemed to be enjoying this newfound attention. There Vergil sat, like a king in his throne with his crown of dragged back snow-hued spines and spikes, as the students groveled and slobbered to be near him like lowly peasants.

_The fuck!? _Dante scratched the side of his head in frustration and dropped his hand uselessly and loudly on the desk. The door opened, startling the teacher who sat at his desk as a toned, dark-haired teen came in followed by a few others. Dante's lips curled back into an instinctual snarl as the gang leader pushed himself further into the room. "Dante!" Alastor shouted out and Dante kicked his desk away from his chair, startling the girl sitting in front of him. If Alastor wanted to deal with him, then he could deal with him elsewhere – just not here. Standing to his feet, he was about to walk off with Alastor when a cold hand gripped his forearm. Turning toward it he found it was Vergil's hand, a serious look dancing on his older brother's face, silently commanding Dante not to walk off with Alastor.

Dante stared silently before giving a reassuring grin, carefully prying Vergil's fingers off of his arm before walking off. Giving out a mumbled apology to the teacher and bowing in respect, Alastor was soon pushing Dante out of the door. The dark-haired teenager paused before exiting the room and shot a dark look in Vergil's direction. With the firm click of the door, they were gone. Vergil ran his tongue over his teeth in hurried thought, a part of him reasoning with the impulse to dash after them. It was idiotic and stupid…but the idea of his younger sibling having to deal with gang leader while he sat about fiddling with his fingers did not sit well with him. As much as he would love to see Dante beaten senseless, he found that right was reserved to him and him alone, not Alastor.

Legs were the first to move before his brain comprehended the situation. Darting out of the classroom, he moved effortlessly through the hallway, feet nearly slipping on the polished floor. Kicking the door opened, cold air smacked him in the face and there he spotted the group of motorcycles and a familiar head of white. Determination settled on his face and he willed his legs to keep on moving on, despite the fact the motorcycles were already leaving. Truthfully he didn't know why he wanted to save Dante's pathetic hide, but he couldn't stop the boiling urge to fight. Last night he was on Cloud Nine despite the fact he nearly had his ribs broken and enough bruises to last him a lifetime. He was beginning to understood why Dante was always getting into fights with others; it felt extremely energizing, as if someone rammed a dirty syringe into his veins and injected the mind-altering drugs into them. To feel that raw and animalistic urge yet there was that control through every move he took.

Staring inquisitively at a passing street sign, he made a sharp right as he made his way toward the arcade. It was the only place he was sure Dante and the others would be at. If not, he could always search the entire area. Just thinking about doing so was already setting the son of Sparda into a foul mood. The stubby building stood squished against its towering neighbors and through the glass walls he spotted Alastor leaning against an air hockey table with his back facing him. Before Alastor was Dante, sitting grumpily on a chair as two of Alastor's mindless thugs for friends remained close by like guards. The area was packed with machines built for entertainment but right now he saw them only as obstacles in his way. It was such a compact area that he could already see himself being pinned and an easy target in more than three places.

Eyes closed and the older twin exhaled sharply through his nose before pushing the door open. " – I just don't get it Dante…you used to be one of us, now look at you. Pathetic," Alastor spoke firmly to Dante who stared to the side, not even bothering to pretend he was paying attention. Vergil eased his way slowly inside, glancing about to see that there were more of Alastor's boys than he originally saw. They were either captivated by one of the games or leaning about watching their friends. Summoning whatever remaining courage that wasn't already in use, he forced himself to move on forward, feeling his heartbeat in his eardrums pulsing away.

It was one of the cronies beside Dante that turned his head and noticed the now motionless Vergil behind Alastor. Alastor noticed the distraction and turned around to see what it was for himself when he was awarded with a fist to the jaw. Before he could fully watch Alastor fall back, the two cronies moved and were upon him. "Vergil!? What in the flying hell are you doing here?!" Dante's voice shouted out at him, Vergil barely dodging the punch from the one on the left. About to jerk out of the way, his back hit something hard, signaling to his brain it was a pinball machine. _Pinned_, his conscience informed him as he failed to doge the heavy fist that came lumbering down and met with his face. Small spots of color littered his vision as if he stared in the sun for too long as he resisted the urge to cup his right eye tenderly. Instead he hastily hoisted himself onto the pinball machine and rammed both of his polished shoes into the face of the attacker.

There it was – that rush, that stream of constant adrenaline. Finally it was kicking in – that control that stemmed from his brain and flowed through all his muscles. His brain was kicking in, thinking ahead and planning every next move as his body was nothing but an iron machine following its orders. Vergil didn't believe it was capable for his scholarly mind to be put to such a medieval yet advance use. Sliding off the pinball machine, he maneuvered his way toward Dante and yanked him up from his seat and began to drag him out of the building. "Verge! Wait! Do you know what you are doing!?" Dante called out behind him, but he remained deaf to Dante's words and instead released Dante's arm so he could smoothly kick the approaching goon right in the gut. Watching him fly back, he darted forward after the goon and grabbed him effortlessly by the collar. Right arm pulled back, fingers folded into a fist, he allowed his muscles to release and leave angry red marks on the offender's nose.

Body turned to grab Dante once more but instead of him grabbing Dante, someone grabbed him. A hand grabbed the collar of his uniform shirt and jerked him forward, pale blue eyes meeting with those angry dark eyes of Alastor's. Vergil's arctic expression met with Alastor's burning electric snarl before both heads met each other in a vicious attempt to dearly hurt the other. Vergil wasn't expecting such a move when Alastor's head met his roughly, causing the older twin to stagger back and place a hand on his forehead. Something warm and wet touched his fingers and Alastor recovered quicker, jerking Vergil back into his grasp to now fully bruise Vergil's face. Instincts kicked in once more and the still reeling twin rammed his knee into the attacker's groin, slightly pleased to see Alastor crumble to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

"Dante…we're leaving…now," Vergil growled out as he dropped his hand and once more grabbed the stunned and the now nearly frantic Dante. The door flung open and Vergil burst into a sprint, Dante stumbling before matching Vergil's fast pace. The sound of angry shouts and footsteps behind him only made Vergil increase his pace. Taking a sharp turn, his mind ran ahead of him, scanning the area like a well-tuned radar. Taking another turn, he jerked Dante into a nearby alley and shoved him beside an evergreen dumpster along with himself. Breathing heavily, he forced his mouth shut when footsteps ran past the alley and kept on moving forward. Relief slowly sank in after a few minutes before bravely venturing out of the alley way to glance about, his hand now tenderly attending to his right eye. God did it burn, the flesh suddenly tender around his eye.

Dante angrily stormed out and turned to face the now brooding Vergil who seemed almost unfazed by what just occurred. Lips pursed, he did the only thing that felt right at the moment: punch his damn brother in the gut. "Why the hell are you doing this!? I can fight my own battles! Do you want to die?! Because I sure don't know what the hell your reason is for doing this!"

"You're my brother…moron. Do I need a better reason…?" he replied back in a tone that sounded as if he took Dante for being mentally unstable and challenged for not understanding such a concept. Dante lightly ran hand through his hair and gave out a groan in discomfort, pacing before his panting brother. God, he looked like a wreck with his swollen eye and split lip that was still bleeding. Who knew what other bruises and cuts his brother acquired because of him. He should have just begged his father to put him back at his old school than come into Vergil's turf and screw things up.

Pausing, he turned to look at Vergil who only stared back at him in determination. Shaking his head in disbelief, mirroring his older brother's actions, he felt as if the roles were switched. He felt as if he was the older brother who flirted with danger and here was the younger brother doing his best to save his brother and ultimately only hurting himself in the end. So much for that happy ending. "Verge – I …dammit…I'm not worth it. Don't be bleedin' for me…" Dante explained, hoping Vergil would understand. Instead Vergil's eyes just narrowed and Dante watched as his lips curled back into a snarl.

"I'm doing this…because I know if this was happening to me, you would do the same," Vergil lectured calmly, despite the snarl that was escaping past his teeth and through his words. "Just lay off it, Dante. I hit the bastard pretty good…I'm sure he'll be stealing his mother's cover-up tomorrow morning," Vergil gloated, pride oozing out of his lips along with blood as he pushed past Dante and in the direction of home. That worried him to no end, seeing Vergil smirking like the Devil himself at the idea he humiliated his enemy in some form or way despite how much blood he had to shed personally to achieve such a thing. Self-destructive. Dante thought that he was the self-destructive twin with his rebellious actions and lack of rules in his life. Yet here was his older twin – the calmer, colder, and more intelligent of the two – who was publicly revealing his teeth to the world in hunger. Dante got the sickening feeling that it was him that helped Vergil onto this suicidal warzone path, ignoring all the warnings of the consequences to come.

Dante only stared at Vergil's diminishing figure, not sure what it would take for Vergil to keep out of his business and out of harm.

* * *

_Day Thirteen…_

It was finally Saturday and Vergil was found lounging on the couch like a languid cat, eyes focused on the novel lying on his lap. His parents had given him hell when he came home Wednesday with his battle scars followed by a disgruntled Dante. Interrogated by his worrying parents, Vergil only stuck with the story that "it's nothing" – if that was even a story at all. So the proud older twin was sentenced to two weeks of being grounded on accounts of lying and getting into fights. Thus he was stuck with a curfew on schooldays and unable to leave the household on weekends. That was fine with him; it wasn't like he normally ventured out of the house on weekends.

The sound of boots on wood floor did not make Vergil's eyes leave the words on the opened book. Instead he continued to read on, his brows lightly rising in a form of acknowledgement on whoever just entered the living room. "Verge…can you stand up for a sec?" a familiar voice asked, but it was the request that successfully made Vergil's eyes leave the book. Matching eyes met Vergil's and Vergil was tempted to huff and go back to his book, ignoring the request. Instead, he opted for huffing in discomfort and carefully placing the book beside him on the couch before standing up. Before he could utter out a snarky "what?" to his younger half, arms wrapped around him tightly into a firm embrace. Vergil stuttered out an incomprehensible word in surprise at this and confusedly mimicked his brother's actions. "I've been meaning to do this for a long time…thanks, bro," Dante murmured out somewhere near his ear, his hot breath warming up the older twin's flesh. Vergil just looked past Dante's shoulder in slight confusion before giving a soft 'hmm' in reply. Dante thanking him by literally saying the so-said words? It…was weird and almost bizarre, and already that sixth sense of his used to sense when Dante was causing trouble or in it began to tingle.

"Dante…are you going to do something stupid now?" Vergil asked, lightly wondering when Dante was going to let go of him.

"Sheesh, Verge. Can't a brother hug his brother and have it not be seen as something naughty? Come on, I'm not going to grab your ass now," Dante replied back laughingly as he finally released his brother to see his face scrunch up in slight disgust. "Just joking, Verge. If you want me to grab your butt I will be happy to comply," Dante purred out, giving a coy wink and playfully shaking his hips. Vergil shook his head and went back to the couch, grabbing his abandoned book.

"Your affection for me frightens and troubles me…" Vergil sighed out, Dante chuckling before blowing a kiss and walking off in the direction of the front door. "Where do you think you're going?" Vergil asked, more out of curiosity than anything else. Dante shrugged his shoulders and grabbed the door knob.

"Out…pops said I can go out if I come back in an hour with bread – we're all out," Dante replied back in an almost rehearsed manner. Vergil remained silent, his eyes fixed on the book and Dante took that as a sign of dismissal. With that said Dante left the house, the door closing gently after him as Vergil's brows furrowed, gaze on the door. Already he got the impression Dante was going to go out and do something stupid, and last time he checked…his father was at work, not at home. Ever since Dante has stepped foot on his school, he has been feeling oddly protective over his troublesome and rebellious brother. As much as he wanted to _not _deal with Dante's life, he already found himself knee deep in it. He has lived his life keeping his tongue still and minding his own business and yet lately he found it to all be terribly silly. There were perks to being an observer in this game called life, but right now all the perks seemed to have gone dry. Staying silent and remaining in the shadows was no longer appeasing as it once was…

Giving out a frustrated groan, he glanced at the page number he was on before closing the book with a firm snap.

_Here we go again. _

Dante paced about before the entrance of the arcade, his hands lightly threaded together and behind the back of his head. He could already hear Vergil's voice informing him of how amazingly stupid and reckless this was. Vergil had the element of surprise last time, but now the arcade was teeming with awareness and attention. Already one of Alastor's goons spotted him, pointing him out to the dark-haired teen that was playing on the air hockey table. Alastor gave a nod but nothing more, but everyone else save for him stared at Dante in anticipation. He had to go inside now; it was now expected.

Dropping his hands, he opened the door to the arcade and walked inside. Alastor straightened up and gave a cocky grin, expecting the teen to grovel and beg for forgiveness for his brother's actions. As much as Alastor rather hunt down the older brother and beat him until he was black and blue, he _supposed_ he was alright with the arrogant Dante groveling and pleading.

"Alastor!" Dante called out as he moved into the arcade, lightly counting how many of Alastor's cronies were lounging about. _Six. Alright, I can handle six…I think_. "I think you got a date with a certain special someone…" Dante spoke as he continued to move forward. Alastor only chuckled, lightly flicking his fingers in the air and on cue those six goons moved in like a pack of wolves, ready to strike when ready.

"A date? With who?" Alastor mused wryly.

"My fist," Dante grinned, causing Alastor to roll his eyes in disbelief before swinging his own fist at Dante. Dante ducked but in turn he was kicked by the goon on his left side. Hissing, he kept his sight on Alastor, tackling the male onto the ground. A growl erupted from the dark-haired teen as he struggled to push Dante off of him. Other hands did the job, jerking Dante off of the gang leader and pushing him roughly around until he was by the air hockey table. Before Dante could even kick Alastor's smug grin, the leader successfully rammed his fist into Dante's jaw. Dante could taste blood as he found himself falling back onto the air hockey table, staring silently at the ceiling. Alastor's hand reached up and tugged him by the hair back into a standing position, his free fist colliding with Dante once more. Finding his body half lying on the table, he felt all that adrenaline and courage from before suddenly leave him. Instead he felt tired and the urge to just close his eyes and sleep felt good right now. Fingers tugged at his hair once more and pulled him up, fist colliding with face for the third time, the sound of others laughing filling the air.

"Dante!"

Eyes opened as his head turned to the right, staring at the emerging figure of his older twin. God dammit, didn't he tell Vergil before that he could fight his own battles!? Vergil rushed toward him, ignoring the goons that stood about waiting for orders on what they should do. Vergil's cold hand touched his shoulder and for just this moment, he suddenly felt that it was right for Vergil to fight this battle. It felt good to find that there was someone willing to jump into any fray if it meant to protect him in the process. Call it selfishness, but Dante was beginning to feel extremely smug that he had an older brother.

Vergil turned his gaze onto Alastor and growled out in warning, moving closer toward the smirking gang leader. Alastor's hands grabbed the collar of his shirt and held him close, in a motion that Vergil was familiar the last time the two butted heads. Vergil didn't bother to struggle back or raise his hands to pry Alastor's hands back. Instead he just stared darkly at the teenager before speaking, his voice growing in intensity as he spoke. "Don't hit him, hit me. Hit me! You can hit me tell I'm dead but let him go!" Vergil shouted out, a crazed look dancing on his face as Alastor continued to hold him by the collar. "Come on! Hit me!" Alastor just stared in silence, his face twisting into a look of surprise before fading into a deep frown. Vergil matched Alastor's frown with his own, eyes refusing to blink as they stared into Alastor's dark, purple-tinted eyes. With a shake of his head, Alastor released Vergil muttering about how this wasn't worth his time and walked off without another word, the other cronies scrambling to their feet and following after their leader like desperate puppies. Vergil lightly rubbed his nose, coldly watching them walk off as he made sure all of them filed out before turning to Dante.

Dante slowly took a seat on the air hockey table, staring in amusement at his older twin that lightly sniffed the air and gave a 'holier-than-thou' look in victory. Dante chuckled and shook his head, patting the empty spot by him. The twin made his way toward Dante and took a seat, the younger twin lightly patting Vergil's knee before slinging an arm around his shoulder. "'Hit me', Vergil? Someone has to do something about that masochist side of yours. It's not healthy," Dante teased, causing Vergil to scoff and lightly push the younger twin.

"Don't get used to it," Vergil replied, not truly commenting on Dante's joking. Silence fell between the two, Dante shooting odd looks at the older brother and Vergil frowning in response.

There was more to be said but both of them couldn't exactly find the right words and structure to piece it all together. So instead they both found themselves suddenly grinning foolishly, proud of their battle wounds and faintly wondering what their parents would think.

There were some words that are hard to say, but sometimes there is no reason for words. There are truly times when silence is golden.

* * *

_Love it? Hate it? Tell me in a review!_

Oh! And if you all are wondering where the heck Alastor comes from, he comes from DMC1! Remember, he was that stabby-stab-Mcstab sword.


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